NICKI MINAJ,

YOUNG JEEZY,

RICK ROSS & MAYBACH MUSIC,

J. COLE,

WALE,

MEEK MILL,

DJ KHALED & FRIENDS,

WAKA FLOCKA,

TREY SONGZ,

MAINO,

BIG SEAN,

2 CHAINZ,

FRENCH MONTANA,

MAVADO,

TYGA.

I SAY : COULD BE BETTER!

1. Define Your Distinct Musical Identity

You must have a firm grasp on what your music is about. And you must be able to define it clearly and quickly. What are your strongest musical traits? What sets you apart from other acts? What attitude or social statement do you make? Being a generic rock, pop or hip-hop act won’t cut it. Dig deeper and discover your unique identity. When you do finally reach some of those rare potential fans, don’t lose them by not being clear about who you are.

2. Describe Your Ideal Fan

Once you have a handle on who you are musically, it’s time to paint a clear picture of your ideal fan. Can you articulate how your fans dress, where they work, what TV shows they watch, what they do for fun and who their favorite cultural heroes are? Observe the types of people who come to see you perform and note what they have in common? Knowing precisely who your fans are will dictate what avenues you use to reach them and how you communicate your message once you do reach them.

3. List Ways of Getting Access to Your Fans

Once you know exactly what type of music fan you’re going after, start making a list of the various resources these specific people are attracted to. What magazines and newspapers do they read? Where do they hang out? What radio stations do they listen to? What retail outlets do they frequent? What web sites do they surf to? What e-mail newsletters do they subscribe to? For example, if your fans are mostly Harley riders, go to a search engine like Google and start entering keywords related to motorcycles. Evaluate the search results and compile a list of the many good sources you uncover.

4. Network and Promote Your Music

Armed with this targeted list of contacts, get busy! Send e-mail press releases to niche media outlets. Contact the webmasters and editors of appropriate publications. Post messages in specialized forums. Visit and interact via the web sites of similar-sounding bands. Contact organizations and charities related to your musical niche.

In short, go to where your ideal fans are. And market yourself through these outlets relentlessly. Why waste time and money trying to promote to everyone … when you can save money and be far more effective by going directly to those valuable one-in-a-thousand fans?

Bob Baker is the author of “Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook,” “Unleash the Artist Within” and “Branding Yourself Online.” He also publishes TheBuzzFactor.com, a web site and e-zine that deliver marketing tips, self-promotion ideas and other empowering messages to music people of all kinds. Get your FREE subscription to Bob’s e-zine by visiting http://TheBuzzFactor.com today.

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HOT OR NOT ? I THINK IT WAS WACK!